DVD Review: Brothers

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'Brothers' centers around the Cahill family. Sam (Tobey Maguire) is about to be deployed to Afghanistan again. He has a family, wife Grace (Natalie Portman) and two young daughters he doesn't want to leave but understand he has to. His younger brother Tommy (Jake Gyllenhaal) has just gotten out of prison. Sam picks him up a few days before he is set to deploy and we get a quick look into the lives of these brothers. Their father Hank (Sam Sheppard) has always viewed Sam as "the hero" and Tommy as "the disappointment". He makes this very clear. Tommy is trying to adjust to live out of prison, but his family isn't making it easy.

Soon, Sam goes missing in Afghanistan and is presumed dead. We the audience know that Sam has really been captured by Terrorists, his family thinks he died. Grace has a hard time dealing with it. She can barely get out of bed, she cries all the time. Soon Tommy tries to help out with everything from re-doing her kitchen to playing with the kids. All of them has a bit of animosity towards Tommy at the beginning now find themselves greatly enjoying his company. He's good with the kids, helpful to grace, and on one particular evening Tommy and Grace kiss. It ends right there, nothing further. Then they get the unexpected call that Sam has been found alive. He comes back home to his family, thinner, scarred and extremely paranoid. He begins to accuse Grace and Tommy of having an affair, he can't communicate with his children. He's messed up from the torment he had to endure and now has to deal with his family possibly falling apart.

The best part in 'Brothers' is by far Tobey Maguire's performance. He was fantastic, he's always been a great actor but it's hard not to think of 'Spiderman' when you hear his name. Hopefully this flick will help with that. It really shows his depth as an actor. (something he's always had) Gyllenhaal and Portman put in great performances as well, as do the young children in the film. We even get a quick gem of an appearance from lovely Carey Mulligan. The film is a remake of a Danish film "Brødre". I've seen parts of it, but not enough to compare the two. The acting is definitely the best part of the film, although the ending is a bit predictable and falls a bit flat.

Recommended: Yes

Grade: B

Memorable Quote: "Your nose it like a lunar eclipse....let me touch it!" - Tommy (Jake Gyllenhaal)

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